The Clippers had their best win of the season, beating the Nets 120-116 on the road against a mostly healthy Brooklyn squad while their own roster was severely depleted. The Clips came down in the 4th quarter to steal the win, and overall, the vibes were great. Keep reading for a full recap of the Clippers’ win over the Nets.
Summary
The Clippers started off the game quite well, even despite reverting to the Reggie Jackson-Eric Bledsoe combination that had been so poor early in the season. While the Nets were able to score, the Clippers played strong defense, and pushed the ball in transition to create easier looks. The Clippers’ offense trailed off as the bench began entering the game, but their energy and defense did not, and they continued to hang around. James Ennis, making his first appearance in a Clippers jersey, chipped in nicely with two buckets around the rim, and the Clippers found themselves down just one after the first quarter.
The second quarter began with the Clippers running out a full bench unit including Ennis, Wenyen Gabriel, and Xavier Moon alongside Keon Johnson and Justise Winslow. Despite almost no shot creation and very little shooting, the Clippers continued to hang around due to their defense and some timely buckets by Gabriel and Moon. As the starters trickled back in, the Clippers’ offense revved back up. Unfortunately, so did the Nets’ offense, and matters were not helped by the Clips’ inability to secure defensive rebounds. Still, strong overall play from the starters had the Clippers trailing by a mere two at halftime.
The third quarter began with a battle between the Clippers and James Harden, as the Clippers found ways to score but were answered by Harden setting up his teammates for easy looks. The Nets slowly grew their lead, but every time it reached double digits, the Clippers hit back with threes, mostly by Reggie Jackson and Eric Bledsoe. Even as the bench came in, the Clippers’ fight and hustle never ceased, as they battled time and again. Gabriel fouled a lot, but also created a second chance opportunity on an offense rebound. Mann stopped a fastbreak and then hit a three in transition. Winslow played great defense on Durant. None of this was enough to get the Clippers a tie or lead, but it did keep the Nets’ advantage at just seven going into the final frame.
The 4th quarter started inauspiciously with a Keon Johnson flagrant foul on a made Harden jumper, giving the Nets a five-point possession that put them up 12. However, as they did all game, the Clippers kept battling, consistently getting the lead to within single digits after every Harden or Mills jumper. The starters began trickling in at the 9 minute mark, and all of the starters sans Serge came in with 7 minutes to go and the Nets’ lead at just six. The Nets then went on a swift 5-0 run, forcing a Clippers timeout. Despite giving up a million shots at the rim, the Clippers whittled the lead down through defense and solid offensive process. Eric Bledsoe was key on both ends, getting a steal and easy layup and then drawing an offensive foul on Harden while scoring around the rim. In fact, the shot that put the Clippers ahead for the first time since early was a Winslow touch shot after a nice Bledsoe pass. Then, up one, the Clippers forced a miss. Going down on offense, Coffey set a screen for Reggie, the Nets hedged, Coffey got the ball in the short roll, took three dribbles, and found Mann for a wide open corner three. Bottoms. The rest of the game was mostly just free throws, and the Clippers won 120-116.
Notes
The Life Vests Impress: I coined the term “life vests” on a recent episode of TLTJTP regarding the Clippers’ current bench unit, which makes last years “Canoes” look like the 96 Bulls. However, the end of the bench played well in this one. James Ennis chipped in 10 points and 4 rebounds, Wenyen Gabriel added 7 and 4, and Xavier Moon scored 8 as well. None of them are brilliant, but they did their jobs tonight in keeping the Clippers attached until the starters could save the day. Gabriel’s size and three-point shooting is intriguing, while Ennis’ competence as a 3 and D guard is highly useful. Nice showings all around.
Eric Bledsoe, Dominant: This was by far Bledsoe’s best game this year, and one of his best throughout his entire Clippers’ career. He scored 27 points on 8-12 shooting including 4-6 from three, and made 7 of his 9 free throws. Bledsoe chipped in three rebounds, four assists, three steals, and two blocks, and was simply everywhere on both ends of the court. He matched Kevin Durant and James Harden, and that’s incredible. Bledsoe had a great December, but this was a step forward yet. Hopefully this is a good omen for the rest of his season in 2022.
This was a great win to start 2022 for the Clippers over a mostly healthy Nets team, with Terance Mann, Amir Coffey, Justise Winslow, and Reggie Jackson all having good games as well. The only key player who didn’t have a strong night was Serge Ibaka, but all things considered, that’s not a huge negative. Leave your comments below!